Quote Center: St. John's Postgame vs. St. Francis Brooklyn

COURTESY OF ST. JOHN’S RED STORM ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS OFFICE

St. John’s Head Coach Chris Mullin…

On if this was the team’s best performance of the season:

“Getting away from the scoreboard, I thought our defensive activity and communication was much better, more in tune to the game. That fuels an offense. When you do that it creates a positive energy and then the ball moves and shots go in.”

On the performance of Greg Williams Jr.:

“I have confidence in Greg [Williams Jr]. He has been much better in practice last week. I like his game and physically, he’s fine. I like his feel for the game. He can make a shot, he can drive the ball, and he has a good feel for the game. I have confidence in him.”

On what the rotation will be in BIG EAST play:

“The game will dictate that. Sometimes matchups, sometimes how the game is flowing. So that’s going to be ever-evolving.”

On if his team is ready for BIG EAST play:

“We always spend more time analyzing and dissecting our team and our [next] game. We’ve seen progress and we’ve seen slippage in different areas in different games so whatever that might be, that’s what those games are for to get ready and I think we’re progressing nicely.”

On his thoughts after the game:

“I thought it was a good game. The scoreboard is one thing, we’ve played well, let some leads slip, but that’s part of the game. I’m just not really here to throw a party. We won the game, we’re trying to move on and we have another game Saturday, which we’ll prepare for. The schedule’s out. Some people don’t like it. I don’t care. And then whoever we play next, we’ll watch our film on them, prepare to defend them, and how we’re going to attack them offensively. And that’s that.”

Redshirt Senior forward Marvin Clark II…

On the team’s progress:

“I wouldn’t even call it a step forward, it’s a step in the right direction. I think we’ve been capable of playing at this level for a while. We were finally locked in mentally tonight and that was the result.”

On if this was the team’s best performance this year:

“I would probably say so. Collectively, as a unit, physically, and the way the points were spread out, I would probably say this was our best performance. Rutgers was a really great performance too.”

On Greg Williams Jr.’s impact on the floor:

“He’s a sparkplug. He’s somebody who we are able to depend on. I tell him every day, all three freshmen, that we need them every day. I think he has shown the most improvement day-by-day. I think he will be a great piece for us when we are playing teams like Seton Hall, with Myles Powell being able to switch on and switch off different defenders. He is a different look for a lot of guards. I think he will be a big piece for us.”

On if the team is ready for BIG EAST play:

“We treat and prepare for every game the same way. We will be ready for whoever is our opposition.”

On the media attention of not being ranked:

“We hear the noise, but we block it all out. We can only control what we can control. The rankings are rankings. At the end of the day, anybody can beat anybody. We’ve seen that, with some of the top teams that have lost to smaller schools. It really doesn’t bother us. It is what it is. We are just going to keep going with it. It doesn’t bother us. We will continue to work and continue to get better.”

Redshirt sophomore guard Mikey Dixon…

On his performance tonight:

“I really stepped my defense up a lot from the beginning of the year and it showed. I always want to come in and try to make a spark on the defensive end. I’ve always been a scorer and I’m just trying to play aggressive, finding my spots.”

On Marvin Clark II’s block:

“That was tough. That gave us the energy that we needed. It was more energy for the game and the crowd. It got them involved.”

On the challenges of heading into BIG EAST play:

“I feel like as the BIG EAST comes closer, as a team, we are just trying to lock in more and just for these last couple of games before break to just play our best basketball that we can going into the conference, to get ready for that. We are really just trying to challenge ourselves on the defensive end as well to get us ready for what is coming.”

On the impact of Marvin Clark II:

“He is one of the older guys on our team, a veteran. His energy and what he brings to the game rubs off on the whole team. When he comes out with that type of energy and momentum, everyone feels like we need to go out there and match his intensity. I feel that’s what happened tonight.”

St. Francis Brooklyn Head Coach Glenn Braica…

On tonight’s game:

"Obviously, we didn't play very well but [St. John's] is a very good and a really tough team to match up with. They have five perimeter guys in there at all times. It's hard for teams to match up with them and I think they are going to cause problems for people this year."